The Jesse family of Avondale went far to help Jeremy Turner through life's hardships.

Jeremy Turner

They opened their home to him when he was without a place to sleep and brought him along on their family vacations. He called Cletis Jesse Sr. "Dad" and Ann Jesse "Mom." And when Turner and his girlfriend split up, Cletis Jesse Jr., even helped him move back to West Jefferson from Thibodaux.

So it came as a shock to the Jesse family last year when Turner was arrested for setting up Cletis Jesse Jr. to be robbed on Jan. 2, 2010. Jesse was shot twice in the face and left beside the darkened Center Parkway in Avondale by gunmen who stole his tricked-out car.

Turner, 23, was convicted Friday of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit armed robbery. Judge Ross LaDart of the 24th Judicial District Court will sentence Turner to mandatory life in prison on May 18.

Wiping tears from his eyes after the verdict, Cletis Jesse Sr. declined to comment. His testimony played a key role in the conviction. He said Turner approached him days after the killing and told him: "They were only supposed to rob him. They weren't supposed to kill him."

In testimony Thursday, Turner denied telling the elder Jesse about the robbery and cast himself as a witness and blamed the crime on Danarius Meredith, 20 , and Roddrick Perry, 22, both of Avondale. They await their trials on charges of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

Turner said he was driving his 1989 Lincoln Town Car to his mother's house to borrow cash when he saw Meredith and Perry beside Avondale Garden Road, and agreed to give them a ride to a nearby home. It was then, he said, that the car stopped running on Center Parkway.

He said he called Jesse for help. Jesse arrived, and they connected their car batteries with jumper cables. While his battery received the charge, he said he helped Jesse adjust his car's stereo system. He was in the trunk adjusting the amplifier when he heard a conversation between Jesse and Meredith grow contentious.

"I heard Cletis call for me," Turner testified. "He said, 'J, help.' I guess he was in trouble. After he said that, I seen a gun pointed towards him. It was Danarius."

He said Meredith fired two shots into Jesse's face.

Petty drove away in Jesse's car, which was later found in an isolated area partially stripped. Meredith forced Turner to drive him to the Lincolnshire subdivision in Marrero, he said. On the way there, Meredith threatened to harm his family if he said anything, Turner testified.

"Did you conspire with Danarius Meredith and Roddrick Perry to have him robbed?" Turner's public defender Andy Duffy asked.

"No, sir," Turner said.

Assistant District Attorney Doug Freese, who prosecuted the case with Blair Constant, greeted Turner's claims incredulously, arguing it made little sense for Meredith to let Turner live to identify him as a killer.

Splashing gruesome photos of Jesse's body on the court's video monitors, Freese also said it made no sense that Turner did not go back to Center Parkway to check on his friend.

"You left a guy who you called a brother lying there like a piece of garbage?" Freese asked.

Turner paused, looking away from the photos, and gave a nonsensical response. "He was still there," he said.